Keep Your Man Card

A group of women got together and came up with 34 qualities they think men consider to be “man-card” worthy. I’ll pick 10 of them and you raise your hand each time you fulfill one.

1. You can grow a beard.

2. You have skills at the grill.

3. You own quality tools.

4. You know about weapons.

5. You work on cars.

6. You have no fear of dirt or sweat.

7. You can drive a stick shift.

8. You give a solid handshake.

9. You believe bacon is its own food group.

10. You have a man-cave filled with man-things.

Are you aware God has a man-card for each of us which contains 5 key qualities? Hold up your card and let’s read 1 Corinthians 16:13-14 together loudly.

“Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. Let all that you do be done in love.”

Now, turn the card over and let’s shout out each of these mandates for men.

1. Wake up

2. Stand up

3. Man up

4. Grow up

5. Love up

1. WAKE UP. The first admonition is to “be watchful” and was used of military guards not going to sleep while on duty. It literally means, “to watch, be alert, be vigilant.” We’re to look out for danger and the attacks of the enemy. It’s the opposite of being spiritually sleepy, passive, careless, and easily deceived.

• In Matthew 24:42, Jesus said, “Therefore stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming.” Illus. Nearly 300 have registered for the Prophecy Conference September 16-18!

• 1 Peter 5:8 says: “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around seeking whom he can devour.”

• In Revelation 3:2 Jesus says: “Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your works complete in the sight of my God.”

For many of us, it won’t be gross sin that derails our walk with the Lord. It will be the lack of spiritual watchfulness.

If you’ve become spiritually sleepy, it’s time to wake up, warriors of God!

2. STAND UP. The second exhortation on your man-card is to “stand firm in the faith.” The idea is to “stand up under, be steady and constant in your convictions.”

• If we go back one chapter, we read this verse in 1 Corinthians 15:58: “Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.”

• Philippians 4:1 – “Therefore, my brothers, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm thus in the Lord, my beloved.”

Don’t bail or bolt. Don’t fold or flee. Stand up, men of God!

Edgewood member Ken White serves as the Men’s Services Coordinator at Pregnancy Resources. Yesterday, I asked him about the influence of men when it comes to the decision for a woman to have a baby when she gets pregnant: “The new mom gets advice from everywhere and seemingly everyone! From family members. From friends. From co-workers, even from strangers. The number one influencer of the mom is the father of the baby because 61% of the time the dad is the first to hear the news from the new mom. They are very influential in the baby decision process.”

According to a 2021 Care Net study, when a woman gets pregnant, the father has the most influence in whether the mother chooses life for their unborn child.

Once a child is born, the absence – or presence – of a dad affects virtually every aspect of his or her life. Children of involved fathers are more likely to stay in school, out of prison, and away from drugs. Dads and granddads, you matter!

Be convictional and don’t compromise.

Don’t waver. Don’t waffle. Don’t wander.

Rise up and stand up, O Man of God!

3. MAN UP. The third mandate is to “act like men.” This is in the present tense and literally means, “Constantly show yourselves as men.” The idea is to be a man, and not a boy.

• 1 Corinthians 14:20: “Brothers, do not be children in your thinking. Be infants in evil, but in your thinking be mature.”

• 1 Samuel 4:9: “Take courage and be men…be men and fight!”

In an article called, The Modern Man and His Fantasy World, the author writes:

“I have noticed a trait among men, where faith is impeded. I’m talking about a cultural fixation upon fantasy…men are giving themselves to something they can see but is not real. However, with Christianity we give ourselves to something that we cannot see but is actually real.

“We find that men are reluctant and stagnant in their Christianity because they are thriving in a fantasy world [of video games, pornography, and fantasy sports]. Is it any wonder why there is such a decline in biblical masculinity in the church? It is a shame that many men are far too busy conquering fake lands, looking at fake women, and winning fake championships instead of following Christ’s path of self-denying, cross-bearing, service.”